Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
Jan
30
Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
“…I Won’t Be Able To Tell Where The Baby Is Coming From.”
“If you are on your hands and knees, I won’t be able to tell where the baby is coming from.” -OB Resident to laboring mother.
There are 34 comments to this post.
What is the saying? — “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing”? or “educated beyond his capacity”? — something along those lines.
My sister had no problem catching my baby when the midwife was still on the road, and her sole experience was having given birth three times in the hospital, and seeing whatever movies’ and TV shows’ depictions of birth was. But doctors are trained in catching the babies of women who are in some variation of the lithotomy position, so when the woman is right-side-up, it looks upside-down to them, and they get confused.
Still, this comment is hilarious, because WHERE ELSE would the baby come from, but THE VAGINA?!? I know he means, “I won’t be able to see the baby at all times, the way I would if you were spread-eagle with my nose in your crotch,” but still…
[Reply]
spingirl Reply:
January 30th, 2010 at 10:59 am (Quote)
My husband, likewise, had no problem catching our second son when I gave birth precipitously while standing up over the toilet. He had *no* medical training, other reading a Wiki-how on emergency childbirth, and *he* managed to figure out where the baby was coming from…some of the docs just make you want question whether they actually learned anything in medical school.
[Reply]
*wave*
This is mine! I was a first-time mom, labouring quite comfortably without an epidural on my hands and knees. The OB was in an “emergency c-section at 10:15 am” so I was stuck with the resident. (In my world, emergencies don’t happen at a particular time, so that by itself is incomprehensible.)
So yes, the resident and a rather crusty nurse repositioned me so I was on my back for a couple of dilation/position checks, and I delivered my son in a left lateral position, right knee hoisted up by my ear. My pleas of “No, no” were responded with “Just try it a little longer.”
I separated my pelvis during this delivery, and I’m convinced it was due to positioning that was just horrible.
I went on to birth #2 on hands and knees … and a different health care provider 
[Reply]
Chara Watson had this to say,
Jan 30, 2010 @ 7:36 am (Quote)
I believe my midwife called it my hoo-hoo. That’s where they usually come from. Just put your hands out and catch! Or better yet, let the mother catch her own baby.
[Reply]
You just wait for the stork to fly up the window.
[Reply]
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: if they can learn to do laparoscopic hysterectomies and cesarean sections and uterine fibroid surgery, then they can learn to catch a baby when a mom is on her hands and knees, in a squat, etc.!!!
[Reply]
Andy Reply:
February 2nd, 2010 at 3:57 pm (Quote)
But then they have to bend their backs, the poor loves. And, CTG’s don’t work as well- you have to hold them on. How can they keep their medical mystique if they actually have to muck in and DO something? It is OK to be woman centred and all, but spare a thought for these doctors having to actually work for a change. I actually upset a doctor once that way. They mistook me for a doctor (being a man and all), so I said ‘No, I’m a midwife, i work for a living!’ They didn’t like it…….
[Reply]
I’d hate to be this doctor’s wife! Imagine how rough sex would be having to explain the birds and the bees to him! *shudders* …and we thought they were JOKING when people say “don’t you know where babies come from?”!
@Momma – I’m so sorry you had to go through that! It’s so unfair that women have to deal with such ignorance. It always worries me when we have to teach the “professionals” about basic biology. 
[Reply]
Being a maternity nurse, I will give you the resident’s perspective and I do get so frustrated that at times, so little changes. The reaction the resident had is fear based. If they always do things the same way, they will not get confused if say they are gotten up at 2am out of a deep sleep to catch a baby. If there is a shoulder dystocia, they will do their maneuvers to help get them unstuck. when a woman is in hands and knees and you are looking at the baby rotating, things are kind of upside down. so,if something bad happens, they can say i did all the same things so it is not that I could not figure out how to help this baby. practice makes perfect and they want to do things the same way all the time, following their internal checklists. works great on the assembly line, not so great when working with women. please remember that how hospitals are organized is based on the industrial model! Most residents only see women giving birth in the lithotomy position, esp with high epidural rates. I am lucky to work with a quite a few who say the only things matters is that the baby gets born and are willing to get down on the floor if needed. rare!
[Reply]
jespren Reply:
January 30th, 2010 at 7:30 pm (Quote)
I do feel for the whole ‘waking up at 2 am out of deep sleep’ thing for a doctor (which is a whole ‘nother part of what’s messed up about the medical community. research has proven that one can not ‘get used to’ sleep deprevation and how residences and med studies are treated is some sort of barbaric hazing ritual that they are put through purely because their mentors had to go through it) but I still have to go with my first response to this post: “In this position baby will come out of my foot of course!”
[Reply]
My reply: “then try asking my husband, he’s the one who put the baby there”
[Reply]
Imagine the intensity of a woman pushing with an op baby, DR. comes in and makes her get in stir-ups. In all her efforts to convince him she’s just fine and wants to stay side lying he says, “oh no, this is the way I know how to do it”. The mamma actually broke into a laugh and said ” well Dr. you better learn some new ways!”.
I was so relieved she said it and not me!
[Reply]
Andy had this to say,
Feb 4, 2010 @ 4:24 pm (Quote)
What does ROFL mean?
[Reply]
My OB said WHAT?!? Reply:
February 4th, 2010 at 4:38 pm (Quote)
stands for “Rolling On The Floor Laughing” Not to be confused with LOL (laugh out loud) or ROFLMAO which is “rolling on the floor laughing my a$$ off) You get the idea. You can google ROFL and find it too, or any others you don’t understand. Thanks for your contributions and comments!
[Reply]
Add Your Comment.
Previous Post
« “…Maybe God’s Trying To Tell You Something…” Next Post
“Oh, Don’t Worry. We Don’t Test For Drugs.” »
« “…Maybe God’s Trying To Tell You Something…” Next Post
“Oh, Don’t Worry. We Don’t Test For Drugs.” »
Yeah, I essentially got this one from my OB though he wasn’t so blatantly unintelligent about it. He just said that he’s fine with me laboring in whatever position I want to, but he likes to be able to see what he’s doing. At least he’s willing to let me do it even if he’s uncomfortable (since his comfort is least important between me, baby and him)!
[Reply]